MIAMI (Reuters) – Taylor Budowich, a one-time aide to Donald Trump, was to appear before a grand jury on Wednesday in the federal probe of the former president’s handling of classified documents after he left the White House, CNN reported.
Budowich, a former Trump spokesman who now leads a Trump-allied Super PAC, MAGA Inc., arrived at the federal courthouse in Miami with his lawyer, Stanley Woodward, according to CNN. Both declined to answer questions as they arrived.
Budowich did not immediately respond to an email from Reuters seeking comment on his appearance.
Federal investigators are examining whether Trump and his associates broke the law by retaining U.S. documents, including at his Florida home, after leaving the White House and whether they then tried to obstruct the Justice Department’s investigation.
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that a witness was expected to appear before a federal grand jury in Miami as part of that Justice Department probe led by Special Counsel Jack Smith.
A federal grand jury panel in Washington has heard months of testimony in that case. It is not known whether federal prosecutors plan to bring charges in Florida instead of or in addition to Washington, the Post said.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland tapped Smith to oversee the documents case as well as the role of Trump and others in a wide range of actions surrounding his 2020 presidential election loss that culminated in his supporters’ attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Trump is the first U.S. president past or present ever to face criminal charges, having pleaded not guilty in April to felony charges brought by the Manhattan district attorney of falsifying business records relating to hush money paid to a porn star before his election in 2016.
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
